Chapter 122 Lines Drawn in the Dust
POV Maya:
We spend hours going from store to store, and in the end, I buy gifts for all the Moretti brothers—with David’s help, of course. Apparently, my friend knows what they like. When I check the time, I’m startled to see it’s almost eight at night. I explain to David that I need to go, promising that tomorrow I’ll go to his parents’ farm. But as soon as I get into my car, I realize something is wrong. It won’t start. Just wonderful.
“That’s just what I needed,” I say, slamming the car door shut.
“If you want, I can give you a ride, but I don’t think that’s a good idea.” I look at David and see no problem at all. Maybe it’s time for the Moretti brothers to know about our friendship. If I become their fiancée, they’ll need to accept David in my life, because there is absolutely no possibility of not having Tay and her men in it.
“Let’s go,” is all I say.
As soon as we arrive at the farm, I struggle to get out of the car with all the shopping bags in my hands. The motherfucker David watches me suffer and doesn’t make a single move to help. Huffing and cursing, I finally manage to get out of the car after a lot of effort. David approaches, wanting to take the bags to help me, but I step away. Now I don’t need the idiot’s help anymore.
“Oh, you’re so kind, David,” I say sarcastically, and all I get from him is his tongue sticking out. How old is he?
I hear hurried footsteps behind us and turn around to see the five brothers standing near the door. Their faces don’t look pleasant—actually, they look furious. What’s the reason for all this irritation? Is it because I only arrived now, or because I left Louis with them? Because if it’s either of those options, I’m going to curse them out. A woman’s shopping is a sacred moment, one that men need to respect.
“That angry look is for me,” David whispers, as if he read my thoughts. “I told you it wasn’t a good idea.”
“Relax. You’re my friend. They won’t mistreat you. I don’t—”
“What are you doing on my farm, Burt?” My words are cut off by the rough, extremely furious voice of Dominic Brute Moretti. “You’re not welcome here.”
I glance to the side and see my friend shifting uneasily. What is this bastard not telling me? The brothers walk quickly and stop in front of us, and I’m very surprised to see Louis beside them. Traitor little bastard. The fury I see in each of their eyes makes me swallow hard. Something about the exchanged murderous looks is making me nervous.
“Get the fuck off my farm, now!” Dominic yells, making me jump.
Okay. He scared me a little.
...
I look at David as he takes a step back, and in the same second I grab his arm. I’m not going to allow him to be kicked off the farm as if he were the worst person alive. I love him, and I won’t let anyone talk about him like that. I’m not moving an inch from here until they tell me what the fuck is going on.
“What’s going on here?” I ask, pissed. “One of you had better explain this to me, and you’d better explain it now.” I say it while looking from David to the Morettis. “This man was very kind to me, and I won’t accept him being treated like this.” I declare it, making the Moretti brothers glare at me with hatred.
Whatever happened between them, it’s clear my friend chose to hide that information from me. David’s eyes beg me to drop it, and it’s almost funny—like that amoeba doesn’t know me at all. Dominic snorts with his crude way of being, but I don’t change my expression. I’m not going to make anything easier for any of them.
“I don’t want him on my farm, because he is…” Dominic stops talking and looks at David with an expression of… disgust?
My eyes well up instantly. He’s not going to say what I think he’s going to say, is he? I look at David, and the answer is right there in my friend’s sad expression. A slap to my face would have hurt a lot less. If Dominic opens his mouth to say any homophobic bullshit, I won’t be responsible for myself. Not at all.
“He is what?” I ask through clenched teeth.
If there’s one thing I vehemently despise, it’s homophobia. What is the sin in people loving each other? I don’t understand what kind of hypocritical fucking society this is—judging people who love freely while, behind closed doors, they cheat on their spouses, have a thousand children outside of marriage and claim none of them. Not to mention the hypocrisy of some who are homosexual themselves, but because they lack the courage to come out, they despise those who aren’t afraid to be happy.
I hate them, and I don’t accept the shitty excuses they give. Today, I’m going to get arrested again.
I hope David pays my bail, or at least calls a good lawyer.
“A fucking traitor,” Dominic replies, and for some reason a weight lifts from my chest.
I won’t be arrested for killing him—wow, that was close. I was already pulling my hair up into a bun.
“How is he a traitor?” I ask, looking at David, who rolls his eyes.
This asshole, for a second, made me think Dominic was homophobic, only to now wear that arrogant look? I’m going to kill this idiot, and Tay and Sean can forgive me later.
“Simple. He pretended to be our friend and went and bought the purebred horse we had our eye on, not to mention the other things he’s always buying to try to be better than us—but he can’t. Isn’t that right, Burt?”
So that’s it? An ego fight? Men really are an ordinary fucking species. For the love of my Gucci heels. And I’m the crazy one in this story. Determined to piss the Morettis off—because let’s be honest, I enjoy the feeling of leaving them irritated—I step closer to David and whisper.
“I’ve changed my mind. For all intents and purposes, we met today.” My friend turns his head toward me, eyes wide. “Oh, and I’m going to hit on you, and you’d better hit on me back, or I’ll kill you.”
“I hate you,” he whispers.
“Good, because I hate you too.”
I turn my gaze back to the cowboys, and from their murderous looks it’s clear I’m going to love every second of pushing them to the edge of madness.
Wow. I’m very cruel.